Cervical collars have been used for many years to immobilize or brace the head and neck region of patients who have undergone head or neck trauma, or who are at risk for spinal cord injuries should the head or neck of the patient be moved prior to either full diagnosis or treatment by a physician. For example, many trauma patients of automobile accidents or other types of accidents are treated by emergency medical professionals in the field and, as either a necessary or precautionary course of treatment, the field technician may apply a cervical collar to the victim at least until the time that an emergency room physician or other physician determines that the patient is no longer at risk for spinal cord injury should the cervical collar be removed. Typically, the cervical collar is comprised of first and second halves which are generally semi-circular in shape and fit around respective front and rear portions of the patient's neck. These two halves are secured together by straps which typically incorporate hook and loop fastening material for quick, easy and yet secure attachment of the straps to each other. When it is desired to remove the cervical collar from the patient, straps on one or both sides of the collar are disconnected by simply pulling the straps away from the collar to disengage the hook and loop fastening material.
Unfortunately, the ease with which a cervical collar may be removed from a patient and/or the inability to determine who removed the collar and/or what time the collar was removed, can create problems leading to premature removal of cervical collars from patients. This can result in spinal cord injury or other injury to the patient. For example, emergency room medical personnel may remove the collar prior to obtaining approval from the physician in charge of the patient. Whether such emergency room personnel remove the collar due to simply mistaken belief that approval to do so has been obtained, or in disregard of proper protocol, avoidable injuries to the patient may be the result. In other situations, it may be the patient himself, or a member of the patient's family, or an acquaintance of the patient that removes the collar for any of a variety of reasons. The patient, for example, may be belligerent such as in the case of a trauma patient that was involved in a vehicle accident while driving under the influence. In such a case, the patient may be generally uncooperative and this may include attempts at removing any restraining devices, including their cervical collar.
A report by The Institute of Medicine entitled “To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System” estimates that 44,000 patients die each year due to medical errors. Some studies place the number of deaths as high as 98,000. Total national costs (e.g., lost income, production, disability, etc.) as a result of medical errors are estimated to be between $17 billion and $29 billion. Of this amount, almost half is healthcare costs. Cervical collar safety is one important area to address.
As the healthcare system continues to experience growth, issues of communication will continue to be a challenge for all healthcare workers. For example, in the field of acute cervical collar application, when a cervical collar is placed by a medic in the field, few if any mechanisms are in place for assuring that the medic will accurately communicate with a subsequent healthcare worker regarding the time that the patient received the cervical collar. Factors that contribute to impaired communication between healthcare workers may include, but are not limited to, differences between technical specialties (EMT medic vs. nurse), gender related issues (male v. female), hierarchical issues (trauma surgeon v. nurse) and corporate issues (healthcare worker v. hospital corporation). Other issues influencing communication and documentation of application of the cervical collar include the method of documentation in the patient's chart. Some healthcare workers may always document application and/or removal of the cervical collar and some workers may not document application/removal of the collar at all. If an error occurs resulting in neurological injury, and the collar is off the patient, liability might be placed on any of those individuals involved with the care of that patient. This results in greater financial stress on an already burdened healthcare system.
In the field of chronic cervical care, there is also a need for healthcare workers to communicate the removal and application of the collar. Frequently, cervical collars must be left on a patient for prolonged periods of time to stabilize the neck. As the cervical collar is left in place for long periods of time, a healthcare worker must clean under the collar and ensure that there is no skin breakdown. Current cervical collar technology does not afford a standardized way to document that the collar has been removed, the skin has been inspected, and collar has been reapplied.
A device is needed to help minimize medical errors involving the placement and removal of a cervical collar in both the acute and chronic care states. Such a device could encourage communication among various healthcare workers, with regard to a cervical collar placement. What is needed is a device that will standardize the application and removal of a cervical collar, thereby lowering the possibility of medical errors. Whether cervical collar care is provided in the emergency room or the nursing home, what is needed is a cervical collar designed as a support system for cervical collar communication between healthcare workers and the healthcare system.
In view of at least the above-mentioned issues, it would also be desirable to provide improvements that help ensure that cervical collars are only removed when an appropriate medical professional has determined that doing so would not unnecessarily risk additional injury to the patient. It would also be helpful to know if the cervical collar has been inappropriately removed or tampered with while on the patient. Various other challenges exist with regard to any number of restraint devices.